You might not grow it, but you like to eat it.

Smooth Lip for Me Please

I go through wine glasses pretty quickly and on a regular basis. Anything that gets used as much as mine do are going to get dinged or most often knocked off the edge of a table, hopefully while they are empty.

As a result, expensive wine glasses have come off the menu. However, there is a standard that must be met. Some wine drinkers will use a different glass for every type of wine or spirit they consume, and it is true that some basic guidelines need to be followed. But through extensive experimentation I have determined that one of the most important features for the wine glass is to not have a rolled lip. This deviation from the intended shape of the glass causes your lips and tongue to miscue on receiving the wine into the mouth. A larger amount of air also enters the mouth changing the wine to air ratio and distorting the riot of flavor you are anticipating.

There is also the perception that a wine glass that is too heavy will work against the wine instead of in harmony with it. In some circles the thinner and lighter glass is the only acceptable vessel for wine. It has to do with the vessel being lighter than what is in it and as you move the glass to your mouth the force of the wine can be felt. If the glass is too heavy the wine may not even be noticed until it is tasted.

As a die-hard winery non-snob I certainly don’t mean to sound snobbish with the glass thing. If someone wanted to share their 1961 Lafitte R. with me I would drink it out of a shoe. But there might be creditability to this thinner glass with the un-rolled lip approach to a different dimension in the wine tasting experience.

Take the test. Get one of your cheaper clunky glasses and one of your better quality, thin and light glasses with a smooth lip. Put equal amounts of the same wine in the glasses and taste. Repeat as often as necessary.